The 2009 North American International Auto Show in Detroit in mid-January will see Brilliance Auto, BMW's Chinese partner, making its first appearance on U.S. soil. The Chinese automaker has already spread its wings to Europe but now its setting its eyes on the North American market as company officials say they want to begin selling cars in the U.S. as early as next year. Brilliance intends to show four vehicles in Detroit, the Pininfarina designed BS6 mid-sized sedan and BS4 compact sedan (pictured above and after the jump) and the BC3 compact coupe and FRV hatchback. In China, Brilliance builds BMW's domestic market 3 Series and 5 Series models.
NAIAS officials also revealed that another Chinese automaker, BYD will make an encore appearance in Detroit after its debut at the 2008 show. BYD has not disclosed any details of the vehicle premieres and models that will be on display at the Cobo Center.
The Chinese automaker made headlines recently when American billionaire investor Warren Buffett's MidAmerican Energy Holdings paid $230 million for a 10-percent stake in the firm to support its green technologies. BYD is currently developing electric-hybrid cars that it plans to sell in China later this year, Europe and Israel by 2010 and eventually in North America.
Just for the record, the number of Chinese auto manufacturers that displayed cars at this year's NAIAS show were five: Changfeng Motor Group, BYD Auto, Geely, China America Cooperative Automotive, Inc./ZXNA (Chamco) and Li Shi Guang Ming Auto Design.
The BlueSport concept was one of the most important models to debut at this year's Detroit Show as it essentially confirms earlier rumors supporting that Volkswagen is preparing to introduce a mid-engined, rear-wheel drive roadster by 2012. If you click through, you can check out a new high-resolution gallery of the BlueSport that was released by the German firm. You may also want to take a look at our previous analytical post on VW's back-to-basics roadster by clicking here or watch the official video here.
